RESOLUTE

Photo by Neil Etienne

The Town of Gravenhurst joined with members from the Simcoe-Dufferin-Muskoka Crimestoppers to raise the flag on Crimestoppers month across the nation Jan. 3. The local organization has been in existence since 1987 and has seen to 6,000 cases solved, 3,700 arrests with a total of $56 million in drugs taken off the local region’s streets. From left to right at the flag raising were: organization committee members Theresa Hone, Grace Smith, Deputy Mayor Jeff Watson, OPP officers Jessica Drake and Derek Wickett, Councillor Bob Colhoun and Constable Jonathan Beckett, police coordinator for the local Crimestoppers.

MUSKOKA – Members of Crime Stoppers of Simcoe-Dufferin-Muskoka gathered in front of the Huntsville Civic Centre to unfurl their flag, which will fly at town hall throughout January.
Theresa Hone, a Muskoka-based Crime Stoppers volunteer, said the organization is raising flags throughout the region to enhance awareness of its programs.
“And it signifies the designated Crime Stoppers Month,” said Hone. “It’s a brand new year and we look forward to capturing as many bad guys as we can.”
Const. Jonathan Beckett, police co-ordinator with the OPP, explained that, since it’s creation in 1976, Crime Stoppers’ goal has been to gather information from anonymous members of the public to help in solving crimes.
“We help solve crimes, which makes the community safer,” said Beckett. “And to this day it’s still anonymous.”
He said Crime Stoppers of Simcoe-Dufferin-Muskoka received more than 2,200 new tips in 2012. And since the regional branch’s creation in 1987, the program has led to more than 3,700 arrests and more than $56 million in drug seizures.
“Crime Stoppers tips may be the final piece of a puzzle that allows the police to make an arrest,” he said. “Maybe the police already know someone is up to something and that tip allows them to make an arrest. In other cases, the tip may be the starting point to a new investigation. Every tip is helpful.”
Members of the public can anonymously contact Crime Stoppers by phone by calling 1-800-222-TIPS, or on the Internet by submitting a web tip at www.tipsubmit.com.
“We don’t subscribe to call display, we don’t record phone calls. And when we get a web tip, we don’t see the person’s IP address, email or anything like that,” said Beckett.
He said web tips are not only convenient for the public, who can fill out the online forms from home, but also for police who can communicate with the anonymous tipster for follow-up information, if necessary.
Beckett said there could be a number of reasons someone may not want to contact the police about a suspected crime, including fear, proximity and perceived identifiably.
“Crime Stoppers gives them that outlet to still do their civic duty in providing that information, but doing it in an anonymous fashion,” he said. “The only way someone would know that a person called Crime Stoppers is if the tipster themselves told someone.”
Tips are often drug-related, though others are about impaired driving, property, thefts, fraud and more.
“We get tips about people driving with no licences as well,” said Beckett.
He noted that if a tip results in an arrest, or sometimes even a warning from police, the tipster may be eligible for a cash reward.
Beckett said the reward funds are raised through volunteer fundraising efforts.
He added that when tipsters pick up their rewards at a banking institution, they remain anonymous.
“They’re given a secret code so when they go to the bank they don’t have to give their name and don’t have to say they’re connected to Crime Stoppers,” he said. “From start to finish, it’s completely anonymous.”